With its iconic Swiss Army knife, the European brand is making inroads into the region with four subsidiaries in Mexico, Brazil, Chile, and Peru. Specifically, the stores in the latter market will be the first in Latin America to adopt the brand's new concept.
Last January, to celebrate the 490th anniversary of Lima's founding, the Swiss brand Victorinox launched a special edition of its iconic pocket knife featuring the main tourist destinations of the so-called City of Kings.
"Peru is a market that has provided many opportunities for our brand, and we are grateful to the country and its culture. It's important to tropicalize each market, and that's why we're launching this knife for Lima's anniversary," Karl Kieliger, Victorinox's general manager for Latin America, told AméricaEconomía .
Although Peru is the most recent market among the countries where Victorinox has established subsidiaries in Latin America—it also has operations in Mexico, Brazil, and Chile—it is one with the best growth indicators. Thus, in 2024, the country grew 17%, while Mexico, affected by the presidential elections, managed to grow only 1%.
By 2025, the company plans to grow 7% in the Latin American region and, specifically, in Peru, its target is 6.2% growth compared to 2024.
Peru is also emerging as a strategic market for the European brand, as two of its four company-owned stores, located in the Jockey Plaza and Larcomar shopping centers, will be remodeled and adapted to Victorinox's new global retail concept. "These stores will be among the first in Latin America to adopt this new concept. We have this opportunity due to the brand's strong performance in the Peruvian market. It's a new store concept, and what we bring to the store are experiences and personalization, which are increasingly important to customers," says the Swiss executive.
In addition to its four company-owned stores, Victorinox has 100 points of sale with independent clients such as Crepier, Pharmax, and Falabella. "We continue to build the brand and are increasingly gaining visibility. Customers are noticing us, and we're very happy with the positioning we've achieved in Peru," he says.
Victorinox currently has 20 distributors in the remaining Latin American countries where they haven't established a subsidiary. While opening a subsidiary in a new market in the region isn't on the table, opportunities may always arise.
“The potential markets I see are Colombia and Argentina. Our brand is strong, and many Argentines shop in Chile or Panama; they are very good customers. There's also Paraguay, a country where we have a very good distributor. Hopefully, we'll soon be able to have our own stores in these markets, working with our distributors. We're working on initiatives to increasingly increase brand visibility because our customers travel a lot and see us in airports in other countries, and that helps us. We have to keep an eye on the brand and have strong marketing teams that communicate new product launches to the market. This is part of the strategy and helps the brand grow,” says Victorinox's Latam general manager.
Beyond the knives
While Victorinox's iconic product is its Swiss Army knives, the company has diversified its product offering with categories such as backpacks, watches, and kitchen knives.
In Peru, the leading sales categories are suitcases, backpacks, and accessories, with a 44% share , and watches, with 27% of sales. “In the Peruvian market, the iconic Swiss Army knife is growing as a core brand. The third most important line is pocket knives, with approximately 15%. We continue to position this product locally, demonstrating its usefulness in everyday tasks; with multiple functions and multi-tools that keep us better prepared to overcome any challenge,” says Kieliger.
As a premium brand, the Victorinox executive believes the products offer a very good value for their quality. "We're not in the luxury market, but you always have to consider a good value, and our customers value that very much. The brand has been strong in Latin America since the 1980s; we have a solid track record, and that's why we have so many fans. It's very important to offer good service; it's not just sales, but also after-sales service, and we can guarantee this service by having a subsidiary," concludes Kieliger.
